Shivani Bothra
Vow Seven:
I will set limits to the Practice of Continence and Acquisition.
The seventh vow is similar to the sixth, but it addresses more directly aparigraha (non-possession) and is also the only vow that addresses the category of brahmacharya (celibacy) or limiting sexual behavior. Therefore, accepting of the seventh vow entails much more than just non-attachment and limiting one's external material possession. It also means one must overcome internal emotions like anger, ego, greed and deceit. Acharya Tulsi taught that the symptoms of violence emerge out of these detracting passions. The vow sets limits on passions, not totally overcoming, but restraining the negative emotions, so that they do not control one's actions.
I received some interesting and somewhat contrasting viewpoints on this vow from my informants. Most of the women respondents commented that they never faced any difficulty following this vow. The reason was simple as some women were already practicing the 12 traditional vows from Sravakacara. I suspect a better reason is that their own sexual desires and acquisitions are already limited by their husbands, so that little decision-making in these areas is left to them. Does this make women virtuous or does it mean they have not been tested? Although some of their male counterparts were extremely appreciative of the flexibility the vows allowed, yet, they never became Anuvratis. The reasons most commonly given were along the lines of: they never thought about it and no one approached them with the Anuvrat pledge form. Such an attitude is reflective of some of the deeply held cultural practices in India regarding the separation of roles for men and women.
Those who did practice the vow though held it as being "timelessly relevant." Thereupon, a question springs up - how a vow that is so "timelessly relevant" for women can be made more relevant for men, maybe by emphasizing on the spiritual benefits and increasing awareness of the vows.
